College World Series 2015: TV, Live Stream Schedule and Game Time for Thursday
A rematch between TCU and LSU takes center stage Thursday night at the 2015 College World Series. The Horned Frogs won the first meeting between the sides in the opening round. This time, the losing team will see its season come to a close.
After the loss, the Tigers edged CSU Fullerton to stay alive in the losers bracket, while TCU was knocked off by reigning champion Vanderbilt in the winners bracket. Whichever team advances will need to beat the Commodores twice in a row to advance to the final series.
Let's check out all of the important information for the pressure-packed elimination game. That's followed by a preview of the matchup and a prediction for which school's title pursuit will stay alive.
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Viewing Details
Where: TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Nebraska
When: Thursday, June 18, at 8 p.m. ET
Watch: ESPN
Live Stream: WatchESPN
Game Preview
Two factors played key roles in the Tigers' downfall Sunday. The pitchers walked five batters, and a normally reliable defense struggled with four errors. When you put those two things together, it's tough to keep runs off the board. The result was a 10-3 Horned Frogs win.
Greg Peterson of WNSR summed up LSU's mistakes:
The Tigers defense returned to form in the win over Fullerton and made no errors en route to a 5-3 triumph. But with the meltdown still fresh in the team's memory, the rematch might provide an additional mental hurdle.
That said, TCU deserves credit for taking advantage of those extra chances. The game was close until the fifth before the Horned Frogs broke it open with a pair of four-run innings. Connor Wanhanen led the charge, going 3-for-4 with three runs batted in.
The Horned Frogs will look for a second straight win over LSU when they send Mitchell Traver (9-2, 1.60 ERA) to the mound to battle the Tigers' Zac Person (2-0, 3.34). Person has made 30 appearances this season, but only one was a start.
His endurance is a question mark, but it's interesting that LSU is using a lefty against a lineup with several left-handed hitters. TCU managed just four hits and no runs off Vandy left-hander Philip Pfeifer last time out.
Carlos A. Mendez of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram passed along comments from Jeremie Fagnan about bouncing back from that poor day at the plate:
Facing a terrific lefty such as Pfeifer is going to help TCU as it prepares to face Person.
Expect a more steady performance from the Tigers in the rematch. That said, it's hard to pick against TCU with Traver on the mound.
Prediction: 4-3 TCU
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